[4] Early female settlers washed clothing in nearby Cottonwood Creek, then provided picnics for their families while the laundry dried.

[3] Land prospector J. S. Pitcher, who owned much of Encinitas, built a bathhouse, playground, boardwalk, dance hall, and several picnic areas.

Every year since 1964 in the month of October, a Mixed Doubles Volleyball Tournament is held here; many of the top beach players in the world participate.

For example, in 2002, the beach earned a "D" grade from "Heal the Bay", a Santa Monica-based nonprofit organization which monitors water quality along the California coast.

Facilities at the beach include handicapped access, a picnic area, numerous restrooms, outdoor showers, a telephone, concession stand daily (Easter through Thanksgiving), surfboard and boogie board rental, fire rings, playground equipment, and volleyball courts.

A tennis court is available nearby in Cottonwood Creek at Moonlight Beach, a small nature reserve with many native plants.

On the third Saturday of September each year is an event known as "Wavecrest", a major meet of woodies, which are vintage cars in which the rear portion of the bodywork is made of wood; these vehicles are a traditional part of West Coast surfing culture.